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Elon Musk says he was not involved in Twitter lifting restriction on Ye's account following antisemitic post

The Tesla CEO said “Ye’s account was restored by Twitter before the acquisition” and that he was not consulted about it.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk.Maja Hitij / Getty Images file

Twitter's new owner Elon Musk said he was not involved in the social media giant lifting a restriction on Ye's account, telling a user that it was done before he completed his $44 billion acquisition of the company.

On Friday, Musk wrote that the platform is "forming a content moderation council with widely diverse viewpoints" and will make "no major content decisions or account reinstatements" before the council convenes.

One user, however, questioned why Ye's account — which was temporarily restricted over an "anti-Jewish" comment — was "already restored."

"Twitter should not be a platform to spew racism and antisemitism,” the user said.

The Tesla CEO said in response that "Ye's account was restored by Twitter before the acquisition" and that he was not consulted about it.

Earlier this month, Twitter said it had locked Ye, formally known as Kanye West, out of his account over a post that violated the company's policies.

In the post, the rapper said he would soon go "death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE," according to internet archive records, making an apparent reference to the U.S. defense readiness condition scale known as DEFCON. The tweet is no longer on Ye’s account, which has more than 31 million followers.

Ye
Ye during Paris Fashion Week. Edward Berthelot / GC Images file

The comment led to Instagram also restricting Ye's account. Several brands, including Adidas, Gap, and Peloton, cut ties with him and on Monday talent agency CAA confirmed it had stopped presenting the artist within the past month but did not specify whether it was due to his comments.

Ye's Twitter account was placed in a "read-only mode," which limits the user's ability to post tweets, re-tweets or like content. They can still read posts on their timelines and can send direct messages to their followers," Twitter's policy states.

"When an account is in read-only mode, others will still be able to see and engage with the account. The duration of this enforcement action can range from 12 hours to 7 days, depending on the nature of the violation," it says.

The Daily Beast reported that the restriction was lifted after Ye's tweet was deleted.